In his first interview since the altercation, Will Smith described the incident as a "horrific night".
"I was going through something that night, you know?", Smith told Trevor Noah.
While he accepts that does not "justifiy my behaviour at all", Smith added that there were "many nuances and complexities to it", but added: "I just - I lost it".
The incident in question saw Will Smith storm onto the stage and strike Chris Rock in the face, after Rock joked about Smith's wife Jada Pinkette-Smith's baldness live on stage, after he presented an award.
Smith has since been handed a 10 year ban from the Academy Awards.
"I understand how shocking that was for people", Smith continued. "I was gone. That was a rage that had been bottled for a really long time".
Will Smith insists that he is fully aware of the pain he caused for people.
Recalling the reaction of his 9 year old nephew, Will Smith revealed, "He's the sweetest little boy. We came home and he had stayed up late to see his Uncle Will, and we're sitting in my kitchen, and he's on my lap and he's holding the Oscar, and he's just like, 'Why did you hit that man, Uncle Will?'.
"It was a mess", he added.
On the reasons for the slap, Smith added, "I guess what I would say is that you just never know what somebody's going through".
"In the audience right now, you're sitting next to strangers, and somebody's mother died last week. You know? Somebody's child is sick. Somebody just lost their job. Somebody just found out their spouse cheated", he told the audience.
"There's all these things, and you just don't know what's going on with people. And I was going through something that night".
"Trust me, there's nobody that hates the fact that I'm human more than me... I've always wanted to be Superman. I've always wanted to swoop in and save the damsel in distress".
"And I had to humble down and realise that I'm a flawed human, and I still have an opportunity to go out in the world and contribute in a way that fills my heart and hopefully helps other people".
